The recordings from the event are now available in our archive, either for attendees to revisit or for those who couldn't make it in person to glean from.
Welcome Themes
Silverchair's CEO Will Schweitzer opened the day with a warm welcome to all speakers, participants, and attendees and an introduction to the day's events. Will explained that the day would encapsulate three core values:- assuming positive intent despite challenging or controversial topics of conversation
- contributing generously to technology and scholarship
- …and if anyone needed any help with anything, please see the Silverchairians!
Transforming Scholarly Publishing from Within: Insights from AIP Publishing's Cultural Revolution
Alix Vance, CEO and President of AIP Publishing, and Sara Rouhi, Director of Open Science and Publishing Innovation delivered a compelling keynote on balancing innovation with stability in scholarly publishing leadership. Rouhi began with a powerful question: when did you last feel energized and in sync with your work? This thought-provoking question led to a discussion about how mission-driven organizations can unlock transformative change by investing in systems."While it feels like we're in this acute moment as an industry, the reality is the industry is really, really stable. And that can be a double-edged sword when it comes to the question of innovation." - Alix Vance, CEO and President, AIP PublishingShe argued that the stability of the scholarly publishing industry enables organizations to focus on internal disruption as fuel for transformation. For AIP Publishing, this required a significant shift in culture and working practices.
"We upped our skills and training, we distributed our decision making, we focused on coaching, specifically on teaming. We created teams that worked more collaboratively and frameworks for goal-driven, evidence-based experimentation. We aligned it all in a wrapper of common company-generated values and intrinsic motivators." - Alix Vance, CEO and President, AIP PublishingAs with any transformation, it didn't come without challenges. Rouhi, who joined six months ago, noted that some employees were initially uncomfortable with the increased responsibility and decision-making power:
"The relentlessness of this, of being told from the jump, this is the universe in which we work, these are the ways of working that we are enabling across the business, and you are going to engage with these priorities. It's not optional." - Sara Rouhi, Director, Open Science and Publishing Innovation, AIP PublishingHowever, the organization has seen remarkable changes after persistent coaching and training, resulting in tangible improvements in business results and collaboration.
One key aspect of the transformation is the focus on effective teaming. Vance explained they
"really lean into all of these protocols of how effective teams have worked. There's a lot of research behind that. The conversation we had yesterday is this idea that the system enables the people and then the people sit on top of the system." - Alix Vance, CEO and President, AIP PublishingThis system allowed for better creativity and better problem solving.
This keynote offered a compelling case study of how scholarly publishers can drive innovation from within, leveraging their stability to create more dynamic, collaborative, and effective organizations. As the industry faces challenges and opportunities, the lessons from AIP Publishing's transformation provide a valuable roadmap for others looking to evolve while staying true to their core missions.
Looking to discover more insights from Platform Strategies 2024? Listen in and experience the full recording of this session.